A woman was left with a severe brain injury after a prank went wrong. The 18-year-old was with a pal in the boot of dance teacher Evie Robinson’s Audi A1 when the car’s owner suddenly accelerated, tipping them both out.

The teenager was left with severe head injuries and had to be put into a coma for a week after hitting the ground at a car park in Mansfield, Nottingham, on August 5 last year. Nottingham Crown Court heard the 18-year-old had been sitting on the roof of another car as it was driven backwards and forwards.

Judge Robert Egbuna told Robinson he accepted she did not set out to cause the victim to suffer life-threatening injuries that day, the Nottingham Post reports. But he handed Robinson a two-year suspended sentence.

The judge suggested that what happened was a prank which went “seriously wrong”.

Robinson was 19 at the time of the incident and is now 20. Judge Egbuna told her: “You did not set out, nor did any of your friends who ended up in the boot of your car, contemplate the actions that would cause life-threatening injuries that happened when the tragic events unfolded.”

In a victim impact statement, the youngster’s mother said her daughter had been full of life and boundless energy but has now lost her future and dignity.

The court heard how the young woman can no longer drive, needs speech sessions, suffers seizures and has mood swings.

Amelia Trem, prosecuting, said Robinson was told by a friend who was in the passenger seat that she was going too fast.

Miss Trem said one of the girls in the boot fell on her backside, hitting her head, but the victim fell face first and lay on the ground not moving.

She explained how initially the pals thought the girl was joking, but the group grew concerned and a boy at the scene called an ambulance.

The court heard that the victim was taken to King’s Mill Hospital before being transferred to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham.

A 5mm deep bleed on the brain was discovered after CT scans were carried out of her head, neck, chest and abdomen.

After surgery, the victim was transferred to a critical care unit where she was placed into a coma for a week. She then spent six weeks on a ward.

Miss Trem told the court Robinson answered no comment during police interviews, but later pleaded guilty to causing serious injury through dangerous driving.

The girl’s mum said in the victim impact statement: “She lost her independence, her dignity and the future she worked so hard for.”

She said her daughter, an aspiring vet, was robbed of her future, adding: “Single handed, you have broken my daughter.”

Lucky Thandi, defending Robinson, pointed to 16 character references in support of her client.

She said Robinson was riddled with guilt, adding CCTV footage of the victim showed her in another car driven backwards and forwards, which was not driven by her client.

Ms Thandi said: “Evie takes responsibility for her actions. The day in question had been like any other for her and her friends, and there had been no intention for that night to end in the way it did.

“The references talk of someone who is a hard-working, kind and valued member of the community. She is a talented dancer, which has led to her teaching dancing, and she works as a choreographer for the Happy Feet Dance Studios.”

She said it was accepted that the offence crossed the custodial threshold and Robinson was under no illusion as to the seriousness of her situation.

Ms Thandi said there had been no more offending since the incident and she had already been sentenced to a life sentence of guilt.

Robinson was disqualified from driving for four years, ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and attend 20 rehabilitation sessions.